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About Me
About Me
A 10-year Hillsdale resident with two kids in the school district, Jonathan has ties to the community and a vested interest in the success of our school district.
Issues
Issues
Learn where Jonathan stands on some of the most important issues facing our school system.
Why am I running for the BOE?
Why am I running for the BOE?
My kids are in the schools.
My kids are in the schools.
The only requirements to serve on the board of education are that you're of voting age and live in town. I check both of those boxes, as does my opponent.
However, there is a third qualification that I think it is particularly important. I have two children in the school system, both at Ann Blanche Smith School. So when the board is making important decisions about how and where our kids learn, or how they get there, that impacts my family directly. I believe board members who are still in our school system can do a better job representing their constituents.
To be an ear and a voice for the community.
To be an ear and a voice for the community.
As a dad in our town, you're going to find me at Smith School drop-off in the morning. You're going to see me on the soccer fields and the baseball/softball diamonds. I'll be at the concerts, plays and talent shows. And if you have a question or a concern, I invite you to come talk to me. If I can help, I will.
We hire the best educators and administrators we can find to run our schools. We want the best for our kids. But there is a reason we elect the board from the residents of our town. One of the board's most important jobs is to represent our community as it oversees the administration of our schools.
To offer an outside perspective.
To offer an outside perspective.
Our board is mostly made up of career educators. These are very good people with excellent insights to offer. But they are the same insights from the same perspectives. If I've learned anything in my career, it's that you never hear anything new inside an echo chamber.
Where I work, challenging decisions require a variety of perspectives and open, transparent discussion. I know how to listen and learn from colleagues in other departments. They bring different experience and different knowledge to the table. When a decision is in front of me, I know it's far better to be in a room of smart people than to be the smartest person in the room.
As we prepare our children for life outside the classroom, we need our board to have experience outside the classroom.
To provide oversight with a focus on transparency.
To provide oversight with a focus on transparency.
Hillsdale is fortunate to have Mr. Lombardy as it's K-8 superintendent. He is talented and capable, cares about the kids and has a clear vision for the future of our district. His work on the middle school referendum is evidence of all of that.
However, Mr. Lombardy is still an employee of your school district. Your elected representatives (the BOE) have an obligation to oversee his work, challenge his recommendations and help him make the best decisions for our schools. This is not to say that the BOE should do his job or make it unnecessarily difficult. But neither should it be a rubber stamp. Constructive conversation makes everyone better.
The board's job is to set the policies, goals and objectives for our district. It is Mr. Lombardy's job to enforce those policies and achieve those goals. Proper oversight requires asking the tough questions throughout the year to make sure our district remains on a track for success.
Questions
Questions
I want to hear from you! If you have questions, concerns or ideas, please share them. Just click on the green button below.
Voting Information
Voting Information
There are plenty of ways to vote. From polling locations, to early voting to vote-by-mail, you can get all of you answers here.
Support my candidacy
Support my candidacy
If you want to support my candidacy, send me your name and address. I'll drop a sign on your lawn and add you to any email communications.
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